The present invention relates to a dual position latch for preassembling the cover to the housing of a ribbon cable connector, and further for retaining a complementary connector.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,359,257 discloses a ribbon cable connector of the type comprising an elongate housing with insulation displacing contacts projecting from the top surface thereof and an elongate cover having aperture means therein for receiving the contacts. Latch means at opposite ends of the connector fix the cover in first and second latched positions relative to the housing, the cover being spaced from the top surface in the first position to permit alignment of the cable for termination. The cover is movable from the first position toward the top surface to terminate the cable, the cover securing the cable in a terminated condition at the second position.
The connector as described above employs a pair of parallel latch arms molded integrally with the cover at opposite ends thereof. Detents on each latch cooperate with a yoke on the housing at the first position, and each latch arm is U-shaped to snap over a detent on the housing at the second position. A similar arrangement employing detents only on the latch arms is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,496,207.
The above described arrangement is satisfactory for achieving a "pre-assembled" connector which facilitates handling and ease in aligning a ribbon cable for termination. Any latching to a complementary connector has heretofore been achieved by discrete latching members. In particular, when the complementary connector is a header fixed to a printed circuit board, resilient latch arms are provided on the header. However, the advent of surface mount technology has necessitated the use of more brittle plastics which will withstand soldering temperatures. It is thus desirable to fix the resilient latch arms to the ribbon cable connector.